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Some Harvard students have launched a petition urging the university to abandon plans to pursue grading reform, calling it "racist."
"This petition calls on Harvard to reject the proposed grading policy, arguing that it is not merely flawed but racially harmful in effect," a petition on Change.org started by Angelina Agostini, a freshman at Harvard College, reads.
"We center racism as a core concern, contending that although the policy is framed as neutral ‘differentiation,’ it functions as a system of ranking and sorting that mirrors and reinforces existing racial and socioeconomic hierarchies," the petition reads. "Because first-generation, low-income (FGLI) students and students of color are disproportionately affected by structural inequities long before arriving on campus, the policy would compound those disadvantages rather than correct them."
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Students walk in front of banners hanging from Memorial Church on the Harvard University campus in Cambridge, Mass., on May 27, 2025. (Sophie Park/Bloomberg)
On March 30, Amanda Claybaugh, dean of undergraduate education, announced that Harvard College would postpone its controversial grading reform to fall 2027 and implement a new "SAT+" grade, The Harvard Crimson reported.
The initial version of the reform was a "strict cap on A grades," which "drew sharp backlash from students and cautious concern from faculty," the student newspaper reported.
In February, The Harvard Crimson noted that the proposal came following a October 2025 report from Claybaugh which found that more than 60% of grades Harvard undergraduates received were A’s, compared to only a quarter of grades 20 years ago.
The report found that grade inflation started to increase in the late 2010s, surging during the COVID-19 pandemic, and is now leveling off.
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A view of Harvard University's Business School campus in Cambridge, Mass., on April 15, 2025. (Faith Ninivaggi/Reuters)
The modified reform will institute three significant changes, namely delaying the implementation by a year, adjusting how the cap on A grades is estimated, and adding a new grade within the Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (SAT/UNSAT) grading system.
In a letter directed to "Harvard College Undergraduate Students, FAS Faculty, Amanda Claybaugh, Undergraduate Educational Policy Committee, and whomever else this may concern," Agostini and another student wrote, "The proposed grading policy is blatantly racist. Its harms are not hypothetical and have a history of heavily harming and burdening students of color and first-generation, low-income (FGLI) students."
"To everyone reading this letter, we want to reiterate that FGLI students of color are no less capable, intelligent, or deserving than their more privileged peers," the letter continued. "What differs is the burden we are forced to carry. Policies like this shift the costs of institutional decisions onto marginalized students while dismissing the resulting harm as accidental or nonexistent. So-called ‘neutral’ standards can produce racial outcomes without discriminatory intent (Inoue, 2023). History shows where this leads, and ignoring those lessons only ensures the harm will be repeated."
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People walk through a gate as they exit Harvard Yard on the campus of Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., on April 15, 2025. (Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images)
Agostini and her co-signer also called Harvard’s history "sexist, racist, and classist," and urged the faculty not to repeat that history.
"We urge you to center the well-being of your students rather than reputational concerns," they wrote. "Do not act on the whims of current reputation and forget how it will be remembered. Harvard history is sexist, racist, and classist. Regardless of its intent, this policy will reinforce that legacy."
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Massachusetts Hall and Johnston Gate are seen in Harvard Yard, the historic center of Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., on Nov. 22, 2024. (A.P. Cortizas Jr./Getty Images)
They continued, "Let us work together in shaping a future that is supportive for all students while also expanding upon Harvard’s rigorous educational environment. This means creating targeted resources that acknowledge differences in experiences and identities, embracing different educational pedagogy, and recentering the enriching academic experience that is expected of Harvard."
Fox News Digital reached out to Harvard and Agostini via Change.org for comment.
Rachel del Guidice is a reporter for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to rachel.delguidice@fox.com.
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